Federal 100: Tamara Lilly

The work: Collaborating with executives across DHS to identify and address IT weaknesses that had severely weakened financial systems.

The impact: Lilly paved the way for DHS to receive its first qualified financial audit statement and established processes for maintaining the security of financial systems.

The nuts and bolts: Lilly developed an innovative methodology for resolving disputes, generating feedback and keeping people focused on the root problems. In the process, she earned the trust of leaders at headquarters and the component agencies, which was essential to her success.